American journal of infection control
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Am J Infect Control · Dec 2004
Private sector hospital response to the 2003 dengue outbreak in the Indian capital metropolis of Delhi.
During 2003, the Indian capital metropolis of Delhi was afflicted with an outbreak of dengue. A private-sector tertiary care hospital responded instantly to the sudden influx of 162 patients during an 8-week interval. That was an unusual challenge because, until 1997, the hospital had exclusively managed patients with ophthalmic disorders. ⋯ Anti-mosquito measures in the hospital premises including residential areas for the nursing personnel prevented any local virus transmission. The integrated therapeutic and public health response was associated with a 1.23% case fatality rate. The protocol developed during the dengue outbreak would address every locally reportable disease in the future.
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Am J Infect Control · Nov 2004
Promoting quality through surveillance of surgical site infections: five prevention success stories.
Public reports of successful quality improvement efforts are useful, but seldom available. We present 5 successful efforts to prevent surgical site infections (SSIs) with the use of prospectively collected surveillance data. ⋯ Surveillance results provide a basis for improvement of infection prevention.
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Am J Infect Control · Oct 2004
Direct costs of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii in the burn unit of a public teaching hospital.
We conducted a case-control study to determine the attributable direct costs of multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDRAB) in the burn unit of a public teaching hospital. The mean total hospital cost of patients who acquired MDRAB was 98,575 dollars higher than that of control patients who had identical burn severity of illness indices ( P <.01). These data should help infection control practitioners and others determine the cost-effectiveness of specific interventions designed to control this emerging nosocomial pathogen.
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Am J Infect Control · Aug 2004
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialPrevention of catheter-related bloodstream infection in critically ill patients using a disinfectable, needle-free connector: a randomized controlled trial.
The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of a disinfectable, needle-free connector in the prophylaxis of catheter-related bloodstream infection. ⋯ To add a disinfectable, needle-free connector to the CDC recommendations reduces the incidence of catheter-related bloodstream infection in critically ill patients with central venous catheters.
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Am J Infect Control · Aug 2004
Assessing the status of infection control programs in small rural hospitals in the western United States.
Organized infection control (IC) interventions have been successful in reducing the acquisition of hospital-associated infections. Rural community hospitals, although contributing significantly to the US health care system, have rarely been assessed regarding the nature and quality of their IC programs. ⋯ Most rural hospitals surveyed have expended reasonable resources to develop IC programs that are patterned after those seen in larger hospitals and conform to recommendations of consensus expert panels. Given these hospitals' small patient census, short length of stay, and low infection rates, further studies are needed to evaluate necessary components of effective IC programs in these settings that efficiently utilize limited resources without compromising patient care.